His Name Will Be Called What?

12 Days Before Christmas Series: 4 – 12/16/2025

Three minute read time

What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet. – The Bard

If you’re familiar with the Christmas story, you know the angels instructed that the baby should be called Jesus. But what you may not realize is that “Jesus” is the result of several linguistic transitions.

Jesus is a modern English translation of the Latin word Iesus, which itself comes from the Greek Iēsous—a rendering of the Hebrew/Aramaic name Yeshua. Yeshua, in turn, is equivalent to Joshua in English—the same name as the leader who brought Israel into the Promised Land.

When we read the Christmas story and see the phrase “you shall call his name Jesus,” we often think of the cross, the resurrection, the empty tomb, the feeding of the thousands, or the One who walked on water and calmed the sea. Yet, for Matthew’s original audience, the name “Yeshua” would have instantly recalled the first Joshua.

Imagine yourself as a first-century Israelite: you would be thinking about the battle for the Promised Land, the walls of Jericho tumbling down, and the military leader who succeeded Moses. You would remember the Ten Commandments descending from the mountain and the time when God dwelt with His people in the Tabernacle at the camp’s center—God with us.

Where we read Jesus, they read Joshua, because that was the name they knew. Our association with Jesus comes from centuries of language transitions, but the natural connection to Joshua is essential for understanding what Matthew’s readers envisioned.

Think about the history these early readers carried: Israel had endured the conquest of Jerusalem by Babylon nearly 600 years before Jesus’s birth. They were exiled, taken from the Promised Land, and the book(s) of Chronicles attributed that exile to the sin of Israel’s kings, priests, and people.

Even after returning to the land, they still felt like exiles under foreign rule.

So, when they heard, “He will be called Yeshua, for he will save his people from their sin,” their thoughts turned to the sin that led to their exile. They hoped this new Yeshua would rescue them, restore the Kingdom of Israel, and fulfill the promise of the Promised Land. Place yourself in their shoes: their expectation was not just about spiritual salvation, but about ending centuries of exile and reclaiming their destiny.

They weren’t entirely wrong. This new Yeshua would save them from their sin. He did reestablish the Kingdom—the Kingdom of God. And one day, Yeshua will welcome His people into the eternal Promised Land, where God will dwell with His people—Immanuel, God with us.

What’s in a name? Everything … and more. Jesus, Yeshua, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Son of David, Son of Man, Son of God. This Christmas, look at the Christ child through both his Hebrew name and his English name, and celebrate the name that is above every other name. (Philippians 2:9-11)

If you’d like to read the whole Christmas story as it unfolded more than 2,000 years ago, check Saturday’s blog for a list of scriptures. If you have questions, feel free to reach out—I’ll do my best to answer.

Return tomorrow for: The Shepherds, the Shepherd King, and the Good Shepherd